Recently got an email about a deal with Amazon Wireless. You can order any Verizon, Sprint or AT&T phone from this discount website's link and they offer a % off your monthly bill. It think it's a different % for each carrier. Here's the link I got in my email. The price of phones seem to be much lower on Amazon than on the actual carrier's websites. Am I missing something? Amazon Wireless Discounts
I've been told Amazon has really good wireless deals... but I'm hesitant to buy a phone from anyone but the Carrier store after a bad experience with a local retailer.
I would go for it. You still have a warranty, you still deal with the same customer service afterwards. You just gotta pick the right carrier for you.
The plans you linked to are student discounted plans. I assume you are a student and meet the criteria. There is usually only one catch - if you cancel or change your plan to a lower plan, within a certain period - 6 months - 12 months, you will be socked with a $100 - $200 fee from Amazon or other 3rd party resellers - this is in addition to the carrier's ETF fee. You must make sure you keep your plan and data options as is once you sign, for at least 6 - 12 months.
Already mentioned above but can't be emphasized enough: make sure you read and understand the terms with any reseller. See the post above mine. A reseller tacking on its own ETF/cancellation fee is typical. To each his own but it seems odd to me to assume that all resellers are the same. You need to carefully select the shop you're buying from as with any online (or local, even) purchase.
I'm not a student but the site is open to friends and family now. So if I sign up for a service and get a cell phone from Amazon, they could charge me a cancellation fee on top of the carriers cancellation fee if I decide I don't like the phone or service?
Yes, because they're giving you a greater discount than what the carrier offers, so they have to recoup it if you cancel your account or downgrade your plan.
Just for your own information too, at least on Verizon (only one I use so only one I know), they have many of these same discounts. Especially students and employees of campuses and cities, governments etc. You just need to normally prove it with identification or access to a .edu or .gov email. I get 15% off my monthly for going to ASU and I know my cousin who works for them full time gets 20%. Both of which we got directly through Verizon as I also had very very bad experiences with third party stores.
FYI: both Sears Wireless and Target Mobile appear to be the same as WireFly (subtle pricing differences from phone to phone), but they have pretty good deals on several popular phones online. The HTC Incredible 2 is free, for instance with no activation, no shipping, no tax. The kicker is that the ordering pages are a little confusing, and they also have the contract stipulations for "181 days" or you get billed.
Since this is an android forum... I would recommend buying with Amazon Wireless over Wirefly. I have purchased phones with both. First, having an Amazon account is pretty much standard as having a Gmail account for android. If you don't have an Amazon account, buying through Amazon Wireless sets that up. Second, Amazon only requires that you keep the plan without changes for 180 days. Who needs to toggle plans when Amazon gives awesome phone discounts. Last, Amazon Wireless has separate customer service from the Amazon store and it is very easy to speak with a rep. I didn't feel that way with Wirefly.
I'm still trying to decide what phone I want to get but I set up an Amazon Acct the other day so I think when it comes time to make my purchase Amazon is the way I'm going. Thanks for your recommendation goya.
Costco gives you a 90 day return policy on phones, so if you want a phone now but know something is coming out in a few months then go ahead a get it, I think you can only do it once though.
